Shipping container



NOV. 23, 1954 W C, RENDALL 2,695,128

SHIPPING CONTAINER Filed Sept. 25, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet l HIS ATTORNEYS Nov. 23, 1954 w. c. RENDALL SHIPPING CONTAINER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 23, 1949 FIGS.

United States Patent O SHIPPING CONTAINER Warren C. Rendall, Tampa, Fla., assignor to Gaylord Container Corporation, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Maryland Application September 23, 1949, Serial No. 117,311

1 Claim. (Cl. zz9sz) This invention relates to shipping containers comprising inner and outer sections hingedly secured together, said sections having a carrying and locking handle construction foldable therefrom.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a shipping container having a handle bent upwardly from a top flange in the inner section through a registering opening in the top flange of the outer section.

Another object of the present invention is to provide openings formed in the overlapping top anges of said sections by the upwardly bent handles thereof located one directly above the other, said handles located along the same side of the openings and cooperating therewith to prevent opening movement of the container.

Another object of the invention is to provide a shipping container having the underlying top flange of the inner section with a doubled-under flap which closes the opening formed in said flange by the upwardly bent handle thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide openings formed in the overlapping top anges of said sections by the upwardly bent handles thereof located one directly above the other, the outer handle having a hand hole ap therein which fills the hand hole in the handle of the outer section when used as a shipping container and which is used for lifting purposes by merely exerting a pressure thereon by pushing downwardly with four fingers, then under, and around for placing the handles in carrying position as shown in Fig. 8.

The invention is more fully explained by reference to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specifcation and wherein like symbols refer to like parts wherever they occur.

Fig. l is a perspective View of a shipping container embodying my invention in its carrying position with the handle upstanding,

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken along the lines 2--2 in Fig. l,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of said container with the sections therein in a partially opened position,

Fig. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken along the line 4 4 in Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 6 6 of Fig. 3,

Figs. 7 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 7 7 of Fig. 3,

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken through the upstanding handles of a modified form of shippin g container in its carrying position, and

Fig. 9 is a plan View of the blank from which the shipping container is folded.

This invention is shown embodied in a shipping container construction in Fig. 1 through Fig. 8. The shipping container 1 comprises an inner section 2 and an outer section 3 hingedly secured together.

The inner section 2 comprises a bottom portion 4 having a side wall 5 extending vertically therefrom. A top flange 6 is folded from said side wall 5 and consists of an inner fixed top ange wall or panel 7 and an outer fixed top flange wall or panel 8 having a handle 9 cut therefrom. The inner top flange wall 7 has tongues 10 thereon which fit into slots 11 in the side wall 5. The outer top ange wall 8 and the bottom portion 4 have marginal ice flaps 12 thereon which slip between the double thickness of material in the end walls 13.

The outer section 3 comprises a side wall 14 having an outer fixed top flange or panel 15 bent downwardly therefrom, said top ange 15 having an opening 16 therein to allow the handle 9 on the top flange 6 of the inner section 2 to be swung therethrough. The outer section 3 also has end walls 17 consisting of an outer end Wall 18 having tongues 19 thereon which t into slots 20 in the side wall 14. The marginal flaps 21 attached to said top outer ange 15 fit between the outer end wall 18 and the inner end wall 22. The meeting edge 22a of the bottom portion 4 of the inner section 2 and the side wall 14 of the outer section 3 constitutes the hinged connection between said sections.

This container is changed from a shipping container to a carrying container by bending the handle 9 from the outer top flange wall 8 upwardly through the opening 16 provided therefor in the outer top flange 15 of the outer section 3 so as to positively lock the two sections together. When in the shipping position, the handle 9 closes the opening formed in the outer top flange wall 8 when the handle 9 is bent upward into carrying position.

In the modification shown in Fig. 8 the entire construction is the same as the hereinbefore described construction but for the addition of a displaceable handle 23 on the outer top flange 15 of the outer section 3, said handle 23 formed from the material removed to form the opening 16 and having a hand hole flap 24 thereon formed from the material removed to form the hand hole 25 When used as a shipping container, the handle 9 and the handle 23 with the hand hole flap 24 therein are disposed flat-wise in the plane of the flange from which they are formed.

When it is desired to carry the container, the handle 9 on the outer top flange wall 8 of the inner section 2 is bent upwardly out of the plane thereof at substantially right angles thereto.

When it is desired to carry the modified form of container, the handle 23 on the outer top iiange 15 of the outer section 3 is bent upwardly out of the plane thereof at substantially right angles thereto, and the' handle 9 on the top flange 6 of the inner section 2 is bent upwardly out of the plane thereto through the opening 16 vacated by the outwardly bent handle 23 on the outer top ange 15 of the outer section. The handles 9 and 23 have elongated hand holes therethrough adapted to be in registering relationship when the two handles 9 and 23 are in carrying position. The hand hole ap 24 depending from the upper edge of the hand hole 25 of the handle 23 is adapted to be bent through the hand hole 25 in the handle 9 on the top flange 6 of the inner section 2 so as to lock the two handles 9 and 23 together and to provide a smooth surface for the fingers of the hand of the person carrying the container.

This construction admits of an easy and simple way to place the handles 9 and 23 into the carrying position. With the handles 9 and 23, and the hand hole ap 24 disposed fiat-wise in the plane of the flange from which they are formed, a person desiring to carry the container may do so by placing four fingers on the hand hole flap 24, and by pushing down, under, and around. This action automatically lifts the handles 9 and 23, and bends the 1landghole flap 24 through the handle 9 as shown in What I claim is:

A container comprising an inner body section having a fixed top wall comprising an outer panel and an inner panel of substantially rigid material, which panels are substantially co-extensive in width and length, a foldable handle struck from the outer panel and providing an opening of substantially the same outline as said handle, the handle being integral with and extending beyond a marginal portion of the outer panel at the opening, an imperforate portion of the inner panel extending completely over the back of said opening and closing the same, the handle being foldable into and out of said opening, a cover section hingedly connected with the inner body section and including a top flange of substantially the same configuration and dimension as the top wall of the body section -and-when in closed -position the -top flange being in super-imposed substantially contacting relation to said top wall, the flange having an opening therein which opening yfis v,in registering relation to tandoi substantially the same configuration and dimensionaasthe opening'in .thewtQp wall panel ,and the handle, .when-the ,container is being opened or closed the handle being disposed `within .thetopening in the outer ply,and when `utilizedgfor .c arrying purposes, the handle being folded outwardly from the opening in the outer panel through the Opening in the top flange 0f the cover section -at substantially a right angle lthereto Aand 'with a lower longitudinal marginal 4 portion of the handle contacting the adjacent edge portion Vof-the opening in -the said Vtop iange, .thus locking the body and cover sections together.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,731,414 IGrossman Oct. 15, 1929 10 2,115,782 Mulnix May 3, 1938 '2,252,023 Mulnix Aug. 12, 1941 2,387,482 Vineberg Oct. 23, 1945 2,400,443 Stopper May 14, 1946 

